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English Cff Forum => General Forum => Topic started by: Vos on June 10, 2022, 09:43:22 AM
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(https://i.imgur.com/zCFczzG.jpeg)
Valverde wins the Innsbruck road world championships.
This CFF season the same WC race in Austria.
Everyone good luck & fun in season 25 ! :)
Overview of previous season 24 =
(https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/1equipos.gif) °Peachy°Melocotons --> very impressive championship because it is achieved with only (https://www.worldcyclingstats.com/img/flags/small/ua.png) Ukrainien cyclists.
(https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/2equipos.gif) LottoStelvio
(https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/3equipos.gif) Flyvende_hjul
(https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/1indi.gif) Daumants Simsons ( OphiukoCT )
(https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/2indi.gif) Elton Fevola ( Bikeos )
(https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/3indi.gif) Piero Mariotti ( ValeronIdolo )
(https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/copaq.jpg) Bikeos
(https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/copaq2.jpg) BLOEMENAANDEMITTE
(https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/arcoiris.gif) Pavlo Fetisov ( °Peachy°Melocotons )
(https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/arcocrono.jpg) Nobby Licuria ( Aurora_Australis )
(https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/giro.jpg) Tor Steine ( ValeronIdolo )
(https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/tour.jpg) Daumants Simsons ( OphiukoCT )
(https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/vuelta.jpg) Koen VanAmerongen ( QuintoYtapa )
(https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/joven.gif) Maurice Hunter ( Aurora_Australis )
(https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/camiclasicas.jpg) Günter Hayen ( Thorboassonarvesen & (https://www.worldcyclingstats.com/img/flags/small/be.png) NT manager woodwatch )
(https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/australia.jpg) = NT WORLD CHAMPION ( SPORTLIFE & all managers with Australian top cyclists )
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(https://www.worldcyclingstats.com/img/logos/27707822768c9c9c00789bdb852cbeae.png) (https://cyclingforfun.org/smf/index.php?action=dlattach;attach=350;type=avatar)selection Lanihuli Cycling
(https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/francia.jpg) Vien ( 26 ), hills-sprinter
(https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/portugal.jpg) Lanca ( 30 ), hills
(https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/francia.jpg) Pensec ( 31 ), hills-sprinter
(https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/spain.jpg) Espinar ( 26 ), hills-sprinter
(https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/suiza.jpg) Semon ( 33 ), hills
We'll be happy if Pensec can score some GC points here. We'll be happier if our hillers can score some points in stages 4 (FFFHH) and 5 (HHHHH), but, of course, none of the above will be easy.
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(https://www.worldcyclingstats.com/img/logos/27707822768c9c9c00789bdb852cbeae.png) (https://i.imgur.com/GvIPZ8B.png)selection SPORTLIFE
11 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/holanda.jpg) Muntendam ( 33 ), silver hills-sprinter
12 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/noruega.jpg) Granberg ( 32 ), bronze allrounder
13 (https://i.imgur.com/xavQvw5.png) Galin ( 32 ), silver flat-hills + TT
14 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/inglaterra.jpg) Harper ( 33 ), flat-hills + hills
15 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/holanda.jpg) Meijer ( 31 ), hills
Good luck everyone ! :)
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stage 1 hill-sprint ( 1x wind ) ;
21º Muntendam 0:21" --> with mechanical breakdown in s5 :(
stage 2, flat-TT 88km ( 1x wind ) ;
30º Galin 1:48"
70º Muntendam 3:37" --> with mechanical breakdown in s3 :(
stage 3 hill-sprint ;
35º Muntendam 0:00"
Granberg did an excellent helper's job, what maybe was a sacrifice because he was high ranked after stage 2.
In s4 still with his teamcaptain, but he dropped even to the 3rd group in s5 and finished on 0:49"
Granberg dropped to 32ºGC on 2:28"
Teamcaptain Muntendam is very unlucky this TDU with 2x crucial bad luck and at the moment 11ºGC on 1:57"
All his teammates had no bike problems. But the hope that Galin could surprise in the GC is gone despite his very good TT result,
he has too much time loss because he cannot sprint ; stage 1 on 1:28" and stage 3 even on 2:40" = 73ºGC on 3:56"
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TDU stage 4, hills ;
12º Harper ( free role )
16º Muntendam 0:17"
29º Meijer ( helper )
A very good helper's job of Meijer who got 5x hands symbols.
The teamcaptain-helper combo dropped in s2 out of the front peleton, but both came back strong in s4.
It was a strategic mistake to make Granberg the back-up helper ( his second helper's role this TDU ).
In retrospective it was unnecessary.
And besides this, he was going too fast in s2, dropped due to a flat tire in s3, and he had no energy left for s4 and s5.
To my big surprise Granberg was still in the top20 ( as 17ºGC ) after this stage 4.
He should have had a free role instead of the useless and unlucky helper's role what costed a lot of time ( 99º on 1:11" ).
TDU stage 5, flathills ( 2x wind ) ;
11º Muntendam 0:31"
27º Harper ( helper )
32º Galin ( free role ) 0:46"
61º Granberg ( free role ) 1:07"
My gamble in s1 did not pay off ; Muntendam ( + his 2 helpers ) could not follow the s1 front peleton of 67.
The 2 free roles had a good start, but dropped out of the s2 front group of 28, and joined the rest of my team in the 2nd group on 0:27"
All 5 SPORTLIFE cyclists stayed in the 2nd group of s3, now on 0:29"
Main helper Harper did an excellent helper's job in s4 and even stayed with Muntendam to give him the important extra bonus in s5.
Galin dissapointed by finishing just outside the points.
TDU final GC ;
8º Muntendam 0:30" --> a very unlucky tour, he could have won*.
17º Granberg 2:30" --> without the 2x helper roles, he could have finished top 10.
21º Galin 3:01" --> also here just outside the points, 0:06" short, and for sure his free role tactics could have been better.
*= Muntendam lost already 0:21" due to his crucial s5 mechanical breakdown in stage 1.
His mechanical breakdown in the time trial costed some seconds too, probably not 10 seconds what was needed to win this TDU.
But his tactics were certainly not perfect in this TDU, and he was riding ( without TC ) with just 98 form.
Only in TT stage 2 a +1 form card was used, and maybe a strategic mistake not to use my other 3 form cards in this little tour.
But I did not expect that the already 33yo Muntendam had a chance to compete for TDU victory without TC bonus.
Anyway, it was a fun roller coaster Down Under, full of strategic & tactical mistakes, because in hinside, much more was possible.
There was not even a top10 stage result. At least SPORTLIFE scored 409 points in this TDU, what is not a very bad season start.
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TDU stage 1 hill-sprint FFFHF (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/viento1.jpg)(https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/nieve.jpg)
16º Pensec 0:21"
Better tactics would have probably landed him in the first group @ 0:00.
TDU stage 2, flat-TT 88km (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/viento1.jpg)(https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/nieve.jpg)
63º Pensec 3:34" -->
He can't TT but he likes the cold so he likely gained a few seconds here.
TDU stage 3 hill-sprint HFFFF (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/solnubes.jpg)
15º Pensec 0:00"
Tactics were better here, so he finished in the first group. :)
TDU stage 4 HHHHH (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/nieve.jpg)
28º Vien 0:26" (free)
87º Pensec 1:02"
I did not get the helper tactics right (too fast!) so Pensec was isolated in the final three sections.
TDU stage 5 flat/hills FFFHH (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/viento2.jpg)(https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/nieve.jpg)
28º Semon 0:42" (free)
43º Pensec 0:46" (captain)
Not great results but not too bad. In the end, Pensec finished 9th GC.
Final GC top 20 for TDU
1 Rafael Angel Muñoz 33 FaltososDeChigre 0: 00"
2 Thijs VanGils 26 MarquinaTeam 0: 05"
3 Mazim Kartashov 30 LottoStelvio 0: 07"
4 Håkon Egemar 26 ICSluj 0: 10" 2
5 Paul Simon 28 Elgrand 0: 11"
6 Nazar Yakovlev 24 OphiukoCT 0: 12"
7 Ricky Elklint 31 ChronoTony 0: 23"
8 Sem Muntendam 33 SPORTLIFE 0: 30"
9 Yanis Pensec 31 LanihuliCycling 1: 26"
10 Tigran Tsarenko 25 °Peachy°Melocotons 1: 32"
11 Ismel Tlisov 31 Bikeos 1: 47"
12 Wybe Heijmans 26 Rekutxuteam 1: 51"
13 Sandro Matas 29 Villavante 2: 03"
14 Jean Jacques Lunet 30 LottoStelvio 2: 03"
15 William Soria 30 Northwest 2: 08"
16 Julian VanBommel 28 Daybe_Team 2: 16"
17 Ottar Granberg 32 SPORTLIFE 2: 30"
18 Garik Fomich 25 JGMTeam 2: 34"
19 Pedro Saenz 31 JGMTeam 2: 35"
20 Dinar Ismailov 26 Rekutxuteam 2: 55"
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Omloop het Nieuwsblad ;
22º Taglioni
Strade Bianche ;
23º Taglioni
Almost certain not the right tactics in OHN, and SB suits Taglioni a little less.
Of course also of big influence = bad team director + no topform + no good helper ( Granberg helped 2 sections in OHN, and just 1 in SB ).
(https://www.worldcyclingstats.com/img/logos/df924f77f10929a2904cfb2e4b350056.png) (https://i.imgur.com/GvIPZ8B.png)selection SPORTLIFE
A bit of a weird PN this season due to almost no mountains.
Therefore it's hard to predict if a good GC is possible. But that will be the goal anyway, despite a form issue.
141 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/italia.jpg) Zeppi ( 32 ), tour
142 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/spain.jpg) Arnau ( 32 ), tour
143 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/italia.jpg) Taglioni ( 31 ), cobblehills
144 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/holanda.jpg) Reigersman ( 30 ), climbhills
145 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/noruega.jpg) Granberg ( 32 ), bronze allrounder
Good luck everyone ! :)
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PN stage 1, time trial FFFHF ( 2x wind ) ;
23º Arnau 0:52" --> pfff, again a mechanical breakdown, and again on the wrong moment ( hill s4 ).
31º Granberg 1:05" --> 1 second short to score points.
40º Zeppi 1:15"
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PN stage 2, flat cobblehills ;
5º Taglioni ( free role ) 0:04"
20º Granberg ( free role ) 0:33"
73º Zeppi ( teamcaptain ) 1:31"
81º Arnau ( free role ) 1:31"
Arnau, Zeppi + helper Reigersman ; all 3 started too slow in flat s1, and Reigersman got a mechanical breakdown in flat s2,
what might explain that unexpectedly he lost contact with his teamcaptain in the next flat s3.
Zeppi his result is probably a bit dissapointing ( and finished as 2nd of a group ).
But it seemed that my other tour cyclist Arnau did well ( finished as last of the same group ) despite his poor start and free role.
And my point-scoring free roles did excellent in this race, what even resulted in the best race result of this season. :)
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PN stage 3, flat-hills-climb ;
8º Zeppi 0:17"
12º Arnau ( free role ) 0:17"
13º Reigersman ( helper ) 0:17"
Excellent results and a perfect job of masterhelper Reigersman who stayed with his teamcaptain the entire race. 8)
Arnau is 4ºGC on 0:20" but not in topform, in contrast to his teammate Zeppi who is much better in the upcoming flat-cobble stage.
Teamcaptain Zeppi is 10ºGC on 0:43" at the moment.
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PN stage 4, CFFCC ( 1x wind ) ;
55º Zeppi 1:41"
103º Arnau ( free role ) 3:03"
It seems that Arnau had an unlucky race, incl. his unfortunate finish as 1st of a group and just missing the cut (= 0:21" extra time loss).
Teamcaptain Zeppi did well, thanks to good help of Granberg and Taglioni.
GC after 4 stages =
4º Zeppi 1:00"
13º Arnau ( free role ) 1:59"
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PN stage 5, hill-sprint ( 1x wind ) ;
46º Zeppi 0:58"
53º Arnau ( free role ) 0:58"
Hmmmm, Granberg did an excellent helper's job and got 5x the hand symbols, and these results of finishing in the 3rd group are good.
Still, with more risky tactics (and more luck), maybe (or even probably) then it was possible to finish with Zeppi in the 2nd group.
The time difference between 2nd group and 3rd group was 0:31" and then Zeppi would have finished 2ºGC instead of now 6ºGC.
Remarkable that free role Arnau finished in the same time as (the better) Zeppi. I suspect that Arnau was lucky in this race (or Zeppi unlucky).
Paris Nice, final GC =
6º Zeppi 1:31"
11º Arnau ( all free roles ) 2:30"
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(https://www.worldcyclingstats.com/img/logos/df924f77f10929a2904cfb2e4b350056.png) (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/images/newest2.jersey.lanihuli.png)selection Lanihuli Cycling
141 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/dinamarca.jpg) Hansen ( 33 ), tour
142 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/spain.jpg) Prats ( 34 ), tour
143 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/inglaterra.jpg) Rose ( 34 ), cobble/hills
144 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/hungria.jpg) Lyka ( 31 ), climb/hills
145 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/holanda.jpg) Neeskens ( 33 ), TT
Yes, late posting, I know, but for the record, here are my team's entrants for S25 of Paris Nice. We hope to do (much) better than last season's PN results where we ended up with no one in the top 20 GC. :-[
Hansen will be our captain and GC hope, with (very) OG Prats (also recently bought) also entered to see what he can do in the GC contest.
Speaking of OGs, the youngest entrant for our team is Lyka, who, at 31, is a baby compared to the other four.
PN stage 1, time trial FFFHF (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/viento2.jpg)(https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/solnubes.jpg)
4º Neeskens 0:04"
52º Hansen 1:21"
62º Prats 1:31"
We hoped Neeskens could win or podium here but 4th is still a good result. Hansen, our GC hope, is a 4-star TTer so his result is okay.
PN stage 2, FFFHCh (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/solnubes.jpg)
21º Rose (helper) 0:33"
49º Hansen (captain) 0:57"
78º Prats (free) 1:31"
Rose did his job in S1 - S3 but rode a bit too hard in S4 to provide help to Hansen. A better result for our captain would have been 14 seconds faster @ :43.
PN stage 3, FHFMM (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/nieve.jpg)
17º Hansen (captain) 0:25"
19º Lyka (helper) 0:25"
60º Prats (free) 1:51"
In this stage we had to wait for, due to a tech/server issue, Lyka did his job well, helping Hansen in every section.
PN stage 4, CFFCC (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/viento1.jpg)(https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/sol.jpg)
41º Rose (helper) 1:24"
58º Hansen (captain) 1:41"
64º Prats (free) 1:49"
We did not get the tactics right so Hansen was dropped in S1. He did get help in the two flat sections, so all was not lost. We would have liked it better if Hansen finished 17 seconds faster @ 1:24", but his final result was not bad.
PN stage 5, FFFHF(https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/viento1.jpg)(https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/solnubes.jpg)
55º Hansen (captain) 0:58"
64º Prats (free) 0:58"
Hansen was 2nd GC coming in to this stage, but dropped a place to finish 3rd GC. His drop is a bit of a disappointment but the 3rd place is the first GC podium finish in Div 1 for our team, so we have cause to be ;D.
== Final Top 20 GC for Paris Nice S25 ==
1 Silver Maasikmets 30 OphiukoCT 0: 00"
2 Koen VanAmerongen 29 CaptainOrange 1: 02"
3 Ken Hansen 33 LanihuliCycling 1: 12"
4 Elton Fevola 30 Bikeos 1: 20"
5 Andrejs Podnieks 28 ICSluj 1: 27"
6 Angelo Zeppi 32 SPORTLIFE 1: 31"
7 Massimiliano Paleri 24 HTCHungria 1: 41"
8 Marco Scortichini 30 vercors 1: 44"
9 Dietmar Häusler 28 ValeronIdolo 1: 52"
10 Dan Regan-Murphy 31 FaltososDeChigre 2: 09"
11 Faustino Arnau 32 SPORTLIFE 2: 30"
12 Carmine Garzelli 31 Shiro_Lions 2: 30"
13 Juan Daniel Ayuso 29 Elgrand 2: 55"
14 Flavio Castro 30 OphiukoCT 2: 59"
15 Alessandro Picoli 32 FaltososDeChigre 3: 19"
16 Bogdan Bidonov 32 °Peachy°Melocotons 3: 20"
17 Jose Damian Prats 34 LanihuliCycling 3: 30"
18 Felipe Cascos 30 BLOEMENAANDEMITTE 3: 35"
19 Lucien Faivre 28 Elgrand 4: 06"
20 Ints Kronbergs 30 Stibacycling 4: 14"
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(https://www.worldcyclingstats.com/img/logos/1d29f44d0e03d78eff360ca0987b1b20.png) (https://i.imgur.com/GvIPZ8B.png)selection SPORTLIFE
Only Arnau is already in topform. But Milne and Osland rode OHN + SB, so there are in topform in stage 4, the climb TT.
And despite a form issue in 3 out of the 5 stages, Milne should be better than Arnau in this little tour. Hopefully I estimate this right.
91 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/inglaterra.jpg) Milne ( 29 ), tour
92 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/spain.jpg) Arnau ( 32 ), tour
93 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/italia.jpg) Conti ( 31 ), tour
94 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/spain.jpg) Ocaña ( 33 ), tour
95 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/noruega.jpg) Osland ( 24 ), climb-TT
Good luck everyone ! :)
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(https://www.worldcyclingstats.com/img/logos/1d29f44d0e03d78eff360ca0987b1b20.png) (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/images/newest2.jersey.lanihuli.png)selection Lanihuli Cycling
111 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/colombia.jpg) Campos ( 32 ), tour
112 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/rusia.jpg) Ektov ( 32 ), tour
113 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/inglaterra.jpg) Perry ( 32 ), climb
114 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/francia.jpg) Pensec ( 31 ), hills/sprint
115 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/spain.jpg) Espinar ( 26 ), hills/sprint
Campos will be the designated captain/GC hopeful.
Stage 1 Tirreno HHFFF (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/viento2.jpg)(https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/solnubes.jpg)
28º Pensec (free) 0:39"
32º Espinar (helper) 0:39"
51º Campos (captain) 0:59"
In this windy race, the lead group #s for S1 to S4 were 10/6/13/25.
Of the GC guys, Will Durig (LottoStelvio) fared the best, coming in @ 0:39". Campos, with good help from Espinar, rode credibly and was among 20 GC guys coming in @ 0:59".
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Stage 2 Tirreno MMMMM (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/solnubes.jpg)
19º Perry (helper) 0:44"
61º Campos (captain) 1:40"
88º Ektov (free) 2:36"
In this mountainous stage, Perry was able to help in S1 and S2 but rode too fast the rest of the way to help Campos, who might have finished 56 seconds faster @ 0:44" if the tactics had gone right. On the GC front, Campos is in a tie for 12th with five others @ 1:18". Leading the charge for the GC is defending Tirreno champion Sten Longva (OphiukoCT), who is tied for the lead with Nazar Usakov (Elgrand).
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Tirreno stage 1, hills-sprint ( 2x wind ) ;
44º Milne ( teamcaptain ) 0:59"
62º Ocaña ( helper ) 0:59"
83º Conti ( free role ) 2:01"
87º Arnau ( free role ) 2:01"
Unlucky and bad result of Milne who should have finished one group sooner ( = 20sec. sooner ).
Very remarkable that even his less good helper finished with 0 EP in the same time as Milne who of course had energy left for s5.
Conti and Arnau also underperformed and got bad results due to missing a cut in s3.
Conti has an excuse, he is not in topform yet. But Arnau has no excuse, and dissapointed.
Tirreno stage 2, mountains ;
14º Ocaña ( free role ) 0:44"
17º Conti ( free role ) 0:44"
47º Arnau ( free role ) 1:29"
53º Milne ( teamcaptain ) 1:40"
Very good results of Ocaña and Conti, and very bad results of Arnau ( the only one in topform ) and Milne ( even a teamcaptain role ).
So far the Tirreno is a rollercoaster and it goes very differently as I expected, estimated, ánd planned.
Maybe I should change of teamcaptain when I look at the current GC ;
6º Ocaña ( 1x helper, 1x free role ) 0:22"
12º Milne ( teamcaptain ) 1:18"
18º Conti ( free role ) 1:24"
23º Arnau ( free role ) 2:09"
But I have still no clue who can ride the best GC ; everyone has negative and positive aspects in the upcoming 3 stages.
On top of this, I expect that also stage 3 ( flat-climb with 1x wind ) will be a hard to predict rollercoaster race for my 4 tour cyclists.
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Tirreno stage 3, flat-climb ( 1x wind ) ;
21º Ocaña ( free role ) 0:57"
23º Milne ( teamcaptain ) 0:57"
26º Conti ( free role ) 0:57"
30º Arnau ( free role ) 1:08"
The race went like this ; 102 - 91 - 83 - 23 - 1.
My team could follow in s1+s2+s3, but not the brutal pace in s4. Maybe Ocaña could, but he had a mechanical breakdown in s4.
Well, not a perfect race but I'm satisfied about the results and about helper Osland who stayed with his teamcaptain in all 4 sections.
Although it seems that Arnau had an unlucky finish, his 11 sec. loss compared to his teammates is a bit of a mystery to me.
Well, it is up to Arnau to get "revanche" in the upcoming climb-TT stage because his first 3 stages were bad.
And he is the best in climb-TT of my 4 selected tour cyclists.
He is not the only one anymore who is in topform, because also Milne and climb-TT specialist Osland are in topform in stage 4.
Osland is the 1st favorite, but very doubtfull if he can beat his former teammate Daniel Finn, due to the extreme low xp (=2) of Osland.
And he is riding without TC bonus, so there could be more cyclists who are better in stage 4.
I assume that Osland is good enough to score a very little sponsordeal of top 9 stage result.
Also a sponsordeal of top 9 GC is at stake. Hopefully one of my tour cyclists can achieve this goal.
GC after 3 stages ;
6º Ocaña ( 1x helper, 2x free roles ) 0:56" --> not in topform and not good in climb-TT.
15º Milne ( teamcaptain ) 1:52" --> the best sprinter = thé reason he is teamcaptain ; needs a GC jump in sprint stage 5.
16º Conti ( free role ) 1:59" --> not in topform, but hopefully a surprising good stage 4 because of his active weather icon.
23º Arnau ( free role ) 2:55" --> too far behind and is riding a bad/unlucky Tirreno, not good in sprint, but he likes the climb-TT.
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Stage 3 Tirreno FFFhFM (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/viento1.jpg)(https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/solnubes.jpg)
14º Campos (captain) 0:45"
73º Ektov (free) 1:59"
74º Perry (helper) 1:59"
This same stage was contested (also with 1x wind) in S24, where an attack in S1 by Ophiuko was successful in causing "a break away group of just 16."
In this go-around, as noted by Vos, the S1 group numbered 102, which probably meant that more conservative tactics were employed by teams or that any attacks proved fruitless.
In S3, I did something I had never done before which was to use "a 'safe-switch' in S3" (as done by Flyvende_hjul last season) with the hoped-for result being "either attack or return depending on being in front or behind."
Well, the S3 attack/safe-switch did not bear any fruit but it did keep Campos and helper Perry in the lead group. In S4, Campos was able to stay in the small front group of 23, which might have been a result of a residual effect of the attack in S3.
Stage 4 Tirreno MMMMM TT (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/nieve.jpg)
46º Ektov 1:02"
69º Perry 1:16"
80º Campos 1:21"
The good thing about these MT TTs is that the time gaps aren't massive. For example, the current GC leader, Usakov, finished 21st in this TT @ 0:39" which is "just" 42 seconds faster than my guy Campos, in 80th.
Going into the final sprint stage, Campos is 16th GC @ 2:22. He'll ride in a free role, and our hope is that he can at least hold on to this spot, or, better yet, move up a couple slots.
-
Tirreno stage 4, climb TT ;
3º Osland 0:03"
14º Arnau 0:34"
28º Conti 0:48"
51º Milne 1:05"
65º Ocaña 1:10"
Osland finished in the same time as his former teammate Daniel Finn ( 2º ) and just 0:03" behind winner Davide Serra.
A promising result for future climb TT races, and also nice, he scored a sponsordeal of 140k.
Tirreno stage 5, sprint ( 1x wind ) ;
60º Ocaña ( free role ) 1:17"
67º Conti ( free role ) 1:17"
68º Arnau ( free role ) 1:17"
71º Milne ( teamcaptain ) 1:57" :-[
WOW ! Extreme bad result of Milne.
He has a much better sprint-GV ánd in topform ánd active weather icon ánd teamcaptain-bonus.
So, he should have started much better with 1 EP less than the not in topform free roles Ocaña and Conti.
But to my big surprise Milne could not follow the s1 front peleton of 51, and all 3 other free role tour cyclists could follow, even Arnau.
Very remarkable. And also to my big surprise, no where in the race Milne gained up on them, and he even finished 1 group behind.
I guess there are mysterious forces in cycling sometimes.
My tactical ánd strategic choices in this Tirreno were far from perfect, and also a bit of a mystery to me.
But also funny, because the final GC results are exactly the opposite of what I expected in who could ride the best GC.
What is shown by their backnumbers.
"My nr91" teamcaptain Milne finished as "last", and "my nr94" Ocaña finished as "best" despite even a helper's role in stage 1.
In retrospective ; much more was possible with better tactical- ánd with better strategic choices.
But I did not expect these final GC results at all, and it is very surprising to me.
Tirreno, final GC ;
6º Ocaña 1:27"
10º Conti 2:08"
14º Arnau 2:49"
15º Milne 2:58"
Well, at least the top9ºGC sponsordeal is achieved, and all 4 in the final top 15 GC, what is a good amount of total points in this Tirreno.
-
(https://www.worldcyclingstats.com/img/logos/6587d84d0fea85c6720fb395e86bca64.png) (https://i.imgur.com/lEXRRzy.jpeg)
s1 =
Matas ( Villavante ) attacked with a high pace, what caused some victims ; the front peleton was downsized to 78 cyclists.
And almost all were shooting to Matas :"do you know that this classic race is 294km and do you know it is bloody hot with 32ºC !"
Including my 2 bronze hills-sprinters and 1 silver flathills specialist, who could follow the front peleton.
My 2 climbers, Beckham and Szõnyi, decided to take it easy and for them MSR is just to enjoy the scenery ( see picture ).
s2 =
Saenz ( JGMTeam ) had probably some kind of heat stroke, because also he tried to break the peleton into pieces.
With not much success, just 5 less in the front peleton, and luckily the 3 SPORTLIFE cyclists could follow.
s3 =
Delhaye ( LottoGranadier ) made an impressive attack attempt, what caused a high pace on this hill in s3.
Now just 55 cyclists in the front peleton, incl. my 2 unprepared bronze hills-sprinters ;
Granberg and helper Boyar in his first race of the season, therefore not in topform. He is a tour cyclist with bronze hill-sprint icon.
s4 =
Just a few cyclists returned and now a front peleton of 59.
To my surprise helper Boyar was still in the front, completely exhausted and no energy left after helping Granberg on the s3 hill.
s5 =
The always exciting final section in MSR ! 8)
Granberg and Boyar miraculously survived the extreme brutal pace on the Cipressa,
but a logic drop on the Poggio, and both ended up in the second group.
The front group of 29 sprinted for victory and podiumplaces, but this was of course just a side-show. ;)
For the statistics ; Sysmans ( Rekutxuteam ) won, just before nr2 Beart ( LottoStelvio ) and nr3 Fetisov ( JGMTeam ).
But the main event of MSR occured 0:32" later = the epic and glorious battle for the last remaining place that gave points. :))
40 contenders sprinted for that last spot, and it looked like that Pensec ( LanihuliCycling ) would win the sprint,
but he was too tired due to his helper's job by launching his teamcaptain into the s5 front group.
Granberg ( SPORTLIFE ) profited of that, and won the glorious sprint for the 30º place ! 8)
A very surprising and excellent result of an unprepared and just 6-star bronze hills-sprinter who was not sold for 1,- two days ago.
I even almost fired him, so he would get a place in my hall of fame as only BBT winner ever of my team.
But at the last moment I decided not to fire him, because he is the only helper ( in 1, 2 or 3 sections ) for Taglioni in E3Harelbeke.
And I had no cyclists for MSR, so he could race that as well, although I did not expect at all that he could score points.
A nice farewell of this successful and very cheap ( 321k ) allround cyclist,
because besides his BBT victory in s23, he was 2nd in the BBT of s22, and 2nd in the Dauphiné of previous s24.
Hopefully Granberg can help a few sections in his very last race of his career ; the upcoming E3Harelbeke.
-
E3 Harelbeke ;
17º Taglioni
He was missing the important s4 helper to get a top result,
but Granberg ( 6-star bronze cobblehills ) did an excellent job in the first 3 sections of his very last race in his career.
(https://www.worldcyclingstats.com/img/logos/8abb6ca97e11114a4e4395f49de88023.png) (https://i.imgur.com/GvIPZ8B.png)selection SPORTLIFE
In the Tirreno 4 tour cyclists were selected, and fun to try Catalunya even with a full selection of 5 tour cyclists. :)
41 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/italia.jpg) Conti ( 31 ), tour
42 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/spain.jpg) Ocaña ( 33 ), tour
43 (https://i.imgur.com/xavQvw5.png) Boyar ( 30 ), tour
44 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/inglaterra.jpg) Milne ( 29 ), tour
45 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/spain.jpg) Arnau ( 32 ), tour
Good luck everyone ! :)
-
Catalunya stage 1, HFFFH ( storm !!! ) ;
23º Conti ( teamcaptain ) 0:31"
59º Boyar ( free role ) 0:48"
68º Milne ( free role ) 0:53" --> with mechanical breakdown in the crucial s5
71º Ocaña ( free role ) 0:56"
82º Arnau ( helper ) 0:56"
Catalunya stage 2, sprint ;
All my tour cyclists finished on 1:00" in the 3rd group. Not good, but probably not bad also.
With the exception of Arnau due to his helpers role ( and he helped just 3 sections ), he finished on 1:41" in the 4th group.
Catalunya stage 3, FFFFM ( 1x wind ) ;
9º Conti ( teamcaptain ) 0:41"
11º Ocaña ( free role ) 0:47"
26º Boyar ( free role ) 0:59"
47º Arnau ( helper ) 1:34"
57º Milne ( free role ) 1:56"
Somehow Milne had a sudden, unexpected drop in s3, what costed him a lot of time ( almost one minute ).
But the rest of my team could follow the front peleton in all flat sections, what caused very good results of Conti and Ocaña.
Catalunya stage 4, TT ( 1x wind ) ;
35º Arnau 1:51"
68º Milne 2:37"
72º Conti 2:39" --> with mechanical breakdown in s3
82º Boyar 2:49" --> with mechanical breakdown in s5
102º Ocaña 3:06"
GC Catalunya, after 4 stages =
7º Conti 1:07"
12º Boyar 1:52"
15º Ocaña 2:06"
17º Arnau 2:19"
- - - - -
22º Milne 2:43"
-
Catalunya stage 5, FMFMM ( 1x wind ) ;
11º Ocaña ( free role ) 0:41"
14º Conti ( teamcaptain ) 0:57"
27º Boyar ( free role ) 1:38"
39º Milne ( free role ) 1:38"
47º Arnau ( helper ) 3:02"
Bad race of Conti, as only one he got a sleeping icon in s3.
He should have finished at least in the same time as Ocaña, but fortunately this bad race did not matter for the GC of Conti.
Ocaña did excellent and moved up 5 places. This was certainly not a good tour of my team, although they scored enough total points.
Catalunya, final GC =
6º Conti 0:59"
10º Ocaña 1:42"
14º Boyar 2:25"
19º Milne 3:16"
- - - - -
22º Arnau ( helper in all stages ) 4:16"
-
Taglioni is the only cobblehills specialist in my team.
So, he had to do it on his own without help and also without TC bonus and with a bad team director.
He is not suited for Gent Wevelgem ( 49º ), but scored some points in the two other cobblehills races :
Dwars door Vlaanderen ;
23º Taglioni
Ronde van Vlaanderen ;
21º Taglioni
(https://www.worldcyclingstats.com/img/logos/b7a5672a34004ea508e7287b01b4f61a.png) (https://i.imgur.com/GvIPZ8B.png)selection SPORTLIFE
Boyar should be the one who can ride the best GC of this selection, but very doubtfull if he can achieve a good GC result.
Probably I will go for stage results with Milne ( stage 1 ), Reigersman ( stages 2 + 3 ) and Taglioni ( stage 5 ).
Milne gets the backnumber that ends on 1, to motivate him after his dissapointing Tirreno ánd dissapointing Catalunya.
He needs that extra motivation, because as not-favorite he is going to try to score a little 180k sponsordeal in stage 1.
71 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/inglaterra.jpg) Milne ( 29 ), tour
72 (https://i.imgur.com/xavQvw5.png) Boyar ( 30 ), tour
73 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/holanda.jpg) Reigersman ( 30 ), climbhills
74 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/italia.jpg) Taglioni ( 31 ), cobblehills
75 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/italia.jpg) Conti ( 31 ), tour
Good luck everyone ! :)
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Itzulia stage 1, hillsclimb-sprint ( 1x wind ) ;
7º Milne ( teamcaptain ) 0:00"
21º Boyar ( free role ) 0:00"
27º Conti ( helper ) 0:00"
This was good enough to score a little sponsordeal, thanks to an excellent helper's job of Conti who returned in s4.
Itzulia stage 2, climbhills ( 1x wind ) ;
6º Boyar ( teamcaptain ) 0:11"
21º Reigersman ( helper ) 0:35"
30º Conti ( helper ) 0:47"
A last minute change because Boyar did not lose time in stage 1, and now gets the opportunity to go for a GC result.
He started with a sleeping icon, but his main helpers still with him and all had a lot of energy left for the remaining 4 sections.
Reigersman did a perfect helper's job, what caused an excellent result of Boyar.
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Itzulia stage 3, MMFFH ( 1x wind ) ;
17º Boyar ( teamcaptain ) 0:10"
36º Milne ( free role ) 0:32"
Milne had a very unlucky finish, with a mechanical breakdown he finished as 1st of a very big group.
Helpers Reigersman ( 37º ) and Conti ( 46º ) finished in that same group, and both did an excellent job to keep Boyar in the front till s4.
Itzulia stage 4, flat-TT ( 2x wind ) ;
47º Milne 2:16"
58º Boyar 2:24"
Itzulia stage 5, cobblehills ;
75º Boyar ( teamcaptain ) 2:42"
79º Milne ( free role ) 3:05"
Taglioni dissapointed by finishing just outside the points ( 34º ), his free role tactic should have been better, or he was just unlucky.
About my GC contenders, I have no clue if they did well in this race or not.
Itzulia, final GC =
7º Boyar 1:03"
13º Milne 2:33"
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(https://www.worldcyclingstats.com/img/logos/ec365cb5b403c66bf9212fc15b3d4289.png) (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/images/newest2.jersey.lanihuli.png)selection Lanihuli Cycling
Our hope is that Ektov can land in the top 10 for the GC, but that may be a stretch. We'll try though. At this point in the season, I believe we are doing better than we did in S24. We are currently 17th in the team standings (with 4491 pts) and we seemed poised to finish higher than 24th (with 5444 pts), which is where we finished in S24.
161 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/spain.jpg) Espinar ( 26 ), hills/sprint
162 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/hungria.jpg) Lyka ( 31 ), climb/hills
163 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/inglaterra.jpg) Perry ( 32 ), climb
164 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/rusia.jpg) Ektov ( 32), tour
165 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/holanda.jpg) Neeskens ( 33 ), TT
As Vos has always said, Good luck everyone!
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TDF stage 1, flat-TT ( 1x wind; rain ) ;
17º Neeskens 0:31"
51º Ektov 2:26"
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TDF stage 2, FHFFhF ( 1x wind; sun ) ;
36º Espinar 0:53" (helper)
49º Ektov 1:33" (captain)
An additional EP in S1 might have meant making the lead group of 36. The hoped-for comeback in S3 and/or S4 never happened, so Ektov lost a minute to some of the other GC guys. :(
TDF stage 3, FFFFF ( sun ) ;
24º Espinar 0:23" (helper)
85º Ektov 1:59" (captain)
Ektov is just a 3-star sprinter, so his result here isn't overly disappointing. We will see how he does in tomorrow's HFFMM TT to determine if we will continue to support him as captain or go for stage results in the four upcoming mountain races.
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Previous season was unique due to not even one victory somewhere.
Fortunately this season not the case ;
(https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/usa.jpg) Beckham --> Romandie stage 4 victory, and Giro stage 3 victory.
(https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/inglaterra.jpg) Lewis --> a surprising Suisse stage 5 victory.
So far this season every tour had a top10 GC result, also the tours after my last forumpost of Itzulia ;
Romandie = 5º Beckham
Giro = 7º Zeppi
Dauphiné = 6º Boyar
Suisse = 10º Milne
(https://www.worldcyclingstats.com/img/logos/ec365cb5b403c66bf9212fc15b3d4289.png) (https://i.imgur.com/GvIPZ8B.png)selection SPORTLIFE
Milne is the teamcaptain who tries to achieve a top10 GC result.
Maybe he gets a free role in stage 9, depending on his GC, because Szõnyi likes to compete for victory in that mountain stage.
Szõnyi was close in stage 2 of the Tour de Suisse ; he finished on 0:00" but as 3rd and last of the front group.
But maybe Milne demands the teamcaptain role in stage 9, because he had a very good start in this TdF ;
stage 1, TT ( 1x wind ) = 65º on 2:40" ( no incidents ) --> in contrast to Zeppi who had 2x a mechanical breakdown.
stage 2, hill sprint ( 1x wind ) = 28º on 0:33" ( = 2nd group ) --> without help, Zeppi his 5 EP in s1 was not good enough.
stage 3, sprint = 42º on 0:23" ( = 2nd group ) --> good helper's job of Zeppi in the first 3 sections, more and better as expected.
41 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/inglaterra.jpg) Milne ( 29 ), tour
42 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/hungria.jpg) Szõnyi ( 29 ), climb
43 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/inglaterra.jpg) Lewis ( 26 ), climb
44 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/usa.jpg) Beckham ( 29 ), climb
45 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/italia.jpg) Zeppi ( 32 ), "tour"
Good luck everyone ! :)
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TDF stage 4, HFFMM TT ( cloudy ) ;
25º Ektov 0:37"
Ektov did okay, but the decision has been made to have him ride free, save for stage 8, where he has the best chance of scoring points.
TDF stage 5, FFMDM ( cloudy ) ;
20º Perry 0:55" (captain)
85º Ektov 1:51 (free)
Perry, who is riding with a TC bonus, will be the captain in stages 7 & 9. We hope that Ektov, who is now 16th GC @ 4:55", will be able to land in the top 15 by tour's end.
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TDF stage 6, FFChHF TT ( rain; 2x wind ) ;
8º Neeskens 0:13"
46º Ektov 1:38"
Neeskens, currently the 70th-ranked flat TT in the game, became the 2nd highest points scorer for the team with this result. He will likely score more points in Stage 10 (FFFFF TT) but probably not enough to become our team points leader.
Meanwhile, Ektov moved up to 14th GC (@ 5:32") with three mountain stages looming. He'll be the captain for Stage 8 (FMMDF) and will ride free in stages 7 and 9.
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TDF stage 7, FMMMM ( clouds; 1x wind ) ;
11º Perry 0:58" (captain)
61º Ektov 2:45" (free)
Good result for silver climber Perry, with good help provided in S1 to S3 by Lyka. In the GC standings, Ektov dropped three places to sit in 17th @ 7:39". He will ride as captain for Stage 8 (FMMDF), so we hope he can move up into the top 15 if all goes well.
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TdF stage 4, time trial HFFMM ;
16º Milne 0:30"
26º Zeppi 0:39"
TdF stage 5, FFMDM ;
8º Beckham ( free role ) 0:31"
13º Szõnyi ( free role ) 0:47"
14º Milne ( teamcaptain ) 0:47"
17º Lewis ( helper ) 0:55"
Ups, a sudden drop in dh s4 of masterhelper Lewis, and therefore not the important extra bonus in s5 for teamcaptain Milne.
Even more unexpectedly ; Szõnyi dropped in dh s4 too.
TdF stage 6, time trial FFC^HF ( 2x wind ) ;
54º Milne 1:48"
TdF stage 7, FMMMM ( 1x wind ) ;
6º Szõnyi ( free role ) 0:29"
15º Beckham ( free role ) 0:58"
16º Lewis ( helper ) 0:58"
28º Milne ( teamcaptain ) 1:27"
Ups, masterhelper Lewis was going too slow in s3.
But "thanks to" a mechanical breakdown of Milne in s4, the teamcaptain-helper combo was reunited again. A better result was possible.
Beckham had an off-day by starting too slow what caused a bad free role result. Of course, having no climb TC bonus is a cause too.
Milne is the current 6º GC on 2:58"
It looks that he will achieve his top10 GC goal easily, and it also looks that the GC podium is far out of reach.
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TdF stage 8, FM^MDF ;
7º Milne ( teamcaptain ) 0:00"
TdF stage 9, mountains ;
1º Szõnyi ( teamcaptain ) = victory ! 8)
12º Lewis ( helper )
30º Beckham ( helper )
38º Milne ( free role ) 2:09"
Milne is still the nr 6º GC, now on 4:20"
It seems to me certain that he will drop one place after the upcoming time trial and that he will be the nr 7º GC in this Tour de France.
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TDF stage 8, FMMDF ( cold ) ;
23º Ektov 0:55" (captain) :(
Ektov was the first of the second group of 50, which included his two helpers, Perry and Lyka.
TDF stage 9, MMMMM ( rain ) ;
24º Perry 1:46" (captain)
51º Ektov 2:45" (free)
Perry got help from Lyka in the first three sections but needed help in S4 to finish higher. Meanwhile, Ektov did not do so well riding free and, as a result, dropped to 21st in the GC @ 10:32". The goal of a top 10 finish is (obviously) not possible. Also doubtful is a finish in the GC top 20 for Ektov. The good news is we will likely score points in the final flat TT with Neeskens.
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Tour de France, final GC =
7º Milne 5:02"
San Sebastian ;
6º Reigersman ( teamcaptain )
19º Milne ( free role )
Excellent results !
It is even the very first result on the palmares of the 30yo Reigersman, who was bought 12 weeks ago for 1,2 M.
BinckBank Tour, final GC =
7º Mikael-Nilsson 2:04"
I bought this 32yo three weeks ago, and he proved to be an excellent investment of just 131k.
So far this season in every tour a top 10 GC result. :)
Now it is up to Boyar in the Vuelta to achieve top10 GC in all tours of this season, what my team never achieved before.
It could be an exciting goal to battle for,
because in previous season Boyar was also the Vuelta teamcaptain and he finished 11º GC, just 0:10" outside the top10 GC.
But this is a different Vuelta, what seems a little bit better suited to Boyar than the Vuelta of season 24.
(https://www.worldcyclingstats.com/img/logos/c8892128eff206aeb674bcc6880a73a6.png) (https://i.imgur.com/GvIPZ8B.png)selection SPORTLIFE
41 (https://i.imgur.com/xavQvw5.png) Boyar ( 30 ), tour
42 (https://cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/italia.jpg) Caneschi ( 27 ), climb
43 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/hungria.jpg) Szõnyi ( 29 ), climb
44 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/usa.jpg) Beckham ( 29 ), climb
45 (https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/dinamarca.jpg) Mikael-Nilsson ( 32 ), silver cobblehills & bronze sprint / helper in all stages without mountains
Vuelta stage 1, mountains ;
5º Caneschi ( free role ) 0:44"
11º Boyar ( teamcaptain ) 1:06"
15º Szõnyi ( "helper" ) 1:28"
18º Beckham ( helper ) 1:28"
Not a perfect race because Boyar was isolated in s2 and s3, but Beckham came to the rescue in s4 and gave the important extra bonus.
Beckham did also a very good helper's job in s1 what caused an excellent start.
First helper Szõnyi failed in this mountain stage. He started too slow and in all sections one group behind his teamcaptain.
-
Vuelta stage 2, cobble-sprint ;
7º Mikael-Nilsson ( "helper" ) 0:00"
91º Boyar ( teamcaptain ) 2:26"
Mikael-Nilsson tried to help by using a very low amount of energy points in the first 3 cobble sections.
Unfortunately this did not help and he was going too fast.
He had a lot of energy left in the final 2 flat sections, what caused a return to the s4 front group and a surprising good stage result.
The isolated Boyar had a very unlucky race ; he finished as 1st of a big group due to a mechanical breakdown in s5.
What costed him at least 0:34" extra time loss. :(
Vuelta stage 3, sprint ( storm ) ;
53º Boyar ( teamcaptain ) 1:23"
The race was going very well with a very good helper's job of Mikael-Nilsson.
But Boyar got a mechanical breakdown in s4, and it was 100% certain that this caused a drop and could not follow his helper anymore.
Also certain that this bad luck costed 0:31" extra time loss. :(
Vuelta stage 4, climb-sprint ( 1x wind ) ;
1º Boyar ( teamcaptain ) 0:00"
20º Beckham ( free role ) 0:42"
Great victory of not-favorite Boyar ! 8)
Vuelta stage 5, flat-hill ;
15º Mikael-Nilsson ( helper ) 0:12"
19º Boyar ( teamcaptain ) 0:12"
Excellent race. :)
Boyar is 8º GC halfway the Vuelta, on 2:04" behind the Australian GC leader Fevola ( Bikeos ).
The two times bad luck on crucial moments costed Boyar a lot of time.
Without it, Boyar would be less than a minute behind, but as 5º GC with still a gap towards the podiumplaces.
Because at the moment Mira ( HTCHungria ) on 0:01" and Simsons ( OphiukoCT ) on 0:05" are extreme close to Fevola.
-
Vuelta stage 6, flat-climb ;
7º Boyar ( teamcaptain ) 0:18"
26º Beckham ( helper ) 0:55"
Excellent result, thanks to a very good helper's job.
Vuelta stage 7, cobblehills ( 2x wind ) ;
10º Mikael-Nilsson ( free role ) 0:33"
53º Boyar ( teamcaptain ) 1:35"
I estimated that MN was way too good to help, but in retrospective I was wrong, MN could have helped the first 3 sections.
In reality just 2 sections, because again a mechanical breakdown of teamcaptain Boyar. Now in s2, what caused a drop,
but this time without consequences because Boyar returned to the front peleton in s3.
Perhaps his finish was unlucky, because Boyar finished as 1st of a little group and just missed the cut, what maybe costed 0:19" extra.
Boyar dropped one place to 9º GC, on 2:59" behind GC leader Simsons ( OphiukoCT ).
It is still extreme close in the top of the GC, for example Fevola ( Bikeos ) is on 0:03"
Far behind the top GC contenders, Boyar battles for a top10 GC and it looks like he will achieve this, but maybe too soon to tell.
Especially because Boyar has problems to stay on his bike in this Vuelta.
-
Vuelta stage 8, mountains ;
7º Beckham ( free role ) 0:35"
10º Caneschi ( helper ) 0:59"
11º Boyar ( teamcaptain ) 0:59"
15º Szõnyi ( helper ) 1:23"
Not an excellent race, because to my big surprise Boyar was isolated in s4.
Helper Szõnyi even accelerated in s4, but despite this, he could not follow, what is very strange, according to me.
Vuelta stage 9, sprint ;
84º Boyar ( teamcaptain ) 2:30"
An extreme off-day of Boyar with a lot of time loss ! :(
The start was very good, but an unexpected sudden drop in s2 caused that he was isolated for the rest of the race.
He dropped even further to the 3rd group in s3 and to the 4th group in s4 ánd to the 5th group in s5.
The time loss compared to sprint stage 3 is enormous ;
Vuelta stage 3, sprint ( storm ) ;
53º Boyar ( teamcaptain ) 1:23"
The race was going very well with a very good helper's job of Mikael-Nilsson.
But Boyar got a mechanical breakdown in s4, and it was 100% certain that this caused a drop and could not follow his helper anymore.
Also certain that this bad luck costed 0:31" extra time loss. :(
Boyar moved up 3 places after mountain stage 8, but the superbad result in stage 9 caused that he is back on 9º GC.
Despite a very unlucky Vuelta, it looks certain that the top10 GC goal will be achieved, because the nr 11 is almost 3 minutes behind.
-
Vuelta stage 10, TT ;
36º Boyar 2:34"
Vuelta final GC ;
9º Boyar 4:38"
What should have been easily 4º without the 2 crucial breakdowns. Anyway, the goal is achieved =
SPORTLIFE scored a top10 GC in all tours of this season. :)
Giro di Lombardia ;
14º Boyar ( teamcaptain ) 0:13"
16º Reigersman ( free role ) 0:26"
-
Innsbruck road WC ;
11º Reigersman 1:05"
The tactics could have been much better, including that Boyar only helped in s1 and s2, and already lost contact with his teamcaptain in s3.
This for sure not great final race of the season, even caused a drop in the season ranking from place 4 to place 5.
Alhough 4th or 5th does not matter to me, what matters is that the gap towards the top 3 was too big throughout the whole season.
And top 3 is already a very nice price.
But SPORTLIFE could win another price this season :
(https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/camiusa.gif) Beckham ( 29yo climber )
I'm happy to win this American jersey for the first time ever. :)
Also the British jersey was/is still missing on my palmares.
But there are 2 British cyclists with an equal amount of points, and I don't know the criteria who gets the jersey now.
Maybe it depends on the best season result and then the jersey goes to the rival. What would be justified, in my opinion.
Although a pitty, to miss out on the desired Britsh jersey by a difference of zero points.
(https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/camiinglaterra.gif)
1.298 points = Vinnie Gilliam ( 30yo, LottoStelvio ) --> 1 stage victory + 2º GC Romandie
1.298 points = Mike Milne ( 29yo, SPORTLIFE ) --> no stage victory + 7º GC Tour de France
But not a bad season to SPORTLIFE ;
5º in 1A with 11.495 points & 5 stage victories & American jersey & in all tours top10 GC. 8)
Let's finish my season afterview with this impressive achievement ;
(https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/1equipos.gif) Congratulations to 1A champion (https://www.worldcyclingstats.com/img/flags/small/au.png) OphiukoCT ! 8)
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(https://www.cyclingforfun.org/cff/imagenes/1equipos.gif) Congratulations to 1A champion (https://www.worldcyclingstats.com/img/flags/small/au.png) OphiukoCT ! 8)
Thanks very much Vos. It has been an enormously exciting end of the season with the three last races. I can even say it was the moment I enjoyed CFF the most since I started playing. I got lucky on the last race, the Innsbruck WC, being capable to follow the attacks with domestique even when my leader wasn't near the favourites, to end on the second place. Also very happy to win 1st div on my first full-competing season after training two half generations for 11 seasons. Next season, I expect more and better before I sell/retire my older half-generation to start a new one ;D